Window



Nov. 22, 1938. A. c. THOMPSON I 2,137,425

WINDOW Filed Dec. 10, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 A. c. THOMPSON WINDOW Filed Dec. 10, 1936 3 SheetsSheet 2 Nov. 22, 1 938 I c, THOMPSON 2,137,425

WINDOW I Filed Dec. 10, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Nov. 22, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE 20 Claims.

This invention relates to windows of the general character of that shown in my co-pending application, Serial No. 103,186. filed September 29, 1936, of which this application'is a continuation in part.

Like the structure of my aforesaid application, the object of the present invention is to provide an improved type of window consisting of. a plurality of horizontally hinged sections adapted to be swung upwardly and outwardly to open position or to be swung downwardly and inwardly in such manner that. the lower edge of each'window section has overlapping and abutting enagement with the next lowermost section, though the structure of the present application involves the inclusion of resilient weather strips at thepoint of engagement, in a manner not shown in the parent application 103,186.

As this description proceeds, it will beseen that the window of this application incorporates the following features and advantages, viz: it

will exclude rain, even when open; it will provide one hundred percentventilation, i. e. its mem-,

structed as to permit easy cleaning of the win-' dows on both sides from within the room; it pre- 5 sents a modern and pleasing appearance; it is so constructed that it may be entirely contained within the thickness of the walls in all positions of adjustment; it may be constructed of standardized units, thus yielding flexibility, both as to the height and the ganging of the windows; it provides multiple shades suitably protected and housed and provides full ventilation even when the shades are drawn for excluding the sun or vision; it provides means for actuating all of the shades in unison under the influence of a single control, and it eliminates the customary fiutter and noises incidental to the use of conventional shades and Venetian blinds.

Further, by the use of resilient weather strips at the point of engagement of the lower portion of one glass pane with the top frame member of the next lower window. section, I' am able to bring about such cushioning engagement of the various window sections with each other as to 55 not only effectively exclude rain, even in driving rain storms, but I am able to eliminate much of the customary rattle incident to the use of windows of this general type.

Further, by the use of resilient weather strips bearing against the ends of the window sections 5 and additional weather strips overlapping the adjacent ends of window sections that are arranged in gangs, I am able to provide a relatively tight window in bad weather, while providing for extremely free and complete ventilation in 10 good weather. Further objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the detailed description 'which follows.

In the accompanying drawings: a

Figure 1 isa vertical sectional view through a 15 window, illustrating an improved actuating and counterbalancing mechanism, hereinafter dey scribed;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of a structure similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1 20 but wherein individual shades for the several window sections are employed;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail vertical sectional view through one of the window sections;

Fig. 4 is a front elevation of one of the window 5 sections;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic front elevation illustrating howthe windows may be arranged in gangs;

Fig. 6 is'aview illustrating one of the spring wound shade rollers;

Fig. '7 is an enlarged side elevation of thelower corner of one of the window sections;

Fig. 8,'is a horizontal sectional view online 8--8 of Fig. 7;

Fig: 9 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view of a structure wherein two gangs of windows are arranged side by side as illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 5, and

' Fig. 10 is an enlarged view of the structure of 40 Fig. 9.

Like numerals designate corresponding parts in all of the figures of the drawings.

Referring now to Fig. 1, 5 designates a building wall having a window opening 6 formed therein. .A plurality of window sections I are pivoted at 8 to whatever material may constitute the side walls of the opening 6, this, of course, being a mere matter of choice upon the part of the builder. Ears 9, rigidly connected to the window sections 1, are in turn pivoted at It to a vertically movable rod II.

The upper end of this rod is connected at I! to a segmental gear l3, said gear being adapted to be rocked about its pivotal mounting ll by means of a worm II. This worm carries a pulley l6 over which an operating cord or chain I1 is passed. Handles I8 and I9 provide means for drawing upon the cord or chain in one .direction or the other to rotate worm l5 and consequently to rock gear [3. This in turn swings the window sections upon their pivots 8, through the medium of the rod I l, to move said windows to either open or closed position in a manner common in this type of window. 1

The lower end of rod II is pivotally connected at 20 to a triangular plate 2|, and this plate is pivoted at 22 in a position corresponding to the position of the pivots 8. A spring 23 is secured at one of its ends to the window sill 24, and its opposite end is connected at 25 to the apex of plate 2|. A particular advantage arising from this construction is that the spring-not only aids in counterbalancing the weight of the window sections, but its effective force is varied as the resistance to the movement of the window sec- ,tions varies.

In other words, there is more resistance to the movement of the windows under ,the influence of the strength of the operator as said windows approach the horizontal than there is at the beginning of the movement of the windows when they lie nearly vertical. Thus, when the windows are closed, pivot 25 lies more nearly in alignment with pivot 22 than when the windowsare halfway open or in the position illustrated in Fig. 1. It

will be observed that as the window sections move from the position of'Fig. l upwardlyor farther toward the horizontal, pivot 25 moves farther toward the right and consequently, the spring 23 will increasingly exert its effective force.

Referring now more particularly to'Figs. 2 and 3, the actuating means for the several window sections are substantially the same and the same reference characters have been applied. However, in this form of the invention, window shades are provided for the several window sections. 'Ihese shades are indicated at 26. They are wound upon conventional spring wound rollers 21, one of which is indicated in Fig. 6. These rollers differ from ordinary shade rollers only in notbelng provided with ratchets forholding them against return movement. They are so arranged as to always tend to wind the shades upon them.

The window sections comprise the glass panes 28, having the free lower edges'2l'. The top edges of these panes are received in the head frame members 29, and their side edges are received in the side frame members".

By referring to Fig. 8, it will be seen that these side frame members are of channel forma 'tion and that the panes 28 are bound therein by suitable packing ll. However, the packing does not completely fill the channels of the members 30, so that sufllcient space is left upon the inner sides of the windows for the reception of the side edges of the shades 28 and for the actuating cords 32 of said shades, it being understood that these cords are. attached to the lower edges of the shades, pass downwardly through the channels of the side frame members upon the inner sides. of the panes, thence over pulleys 33,

" disposed at the bottom of said members ill,

thence upwardly through the channels .of the side frame members II to and through passages N in the head frame members 2!.

All of the cords of all of the shades may be wound upon a roller 35 or shaft and pulleys, to

which turning motiori' may beimparted by cord 36 and handle". Any suitable means m y be employed'for holding the cord 36 in the position to which it is drawn, such, for example, as a. common cleat or ratchet attached to roller or shade, it being understood that whenever the handle 31 is released, the rollers 21' will act to draw the shades back upon themselves.

'The head frame members 28 are continued downwardly, as indicated at 29, to form protective housing for the shades. Resilient metallic strips 38 'are secured to the head frame members, and the panes of the upper sections contact these weather strips upon the next lower sections when the windows are moved to closed position under the influence of the worm gearing hereinbefore described.

, The head frame members are provided with ears 9, corresponding. to the ears 9, and these ears are pivoted at Hi to operating strips H in the manner hereinbefore set forth. These head frame members are provided with pivots 8, corresponding to the pivot mountings of the window sections hereinbefore described.

Fig. 5 illustrates how two vertical rows of window sections may be arranged in gangs in a metallic frame 38 of any suitable configuration in cross section, such, for example, as the conventional angle iron commonly employed for metallic window frames. The center bar 39 may likewise be of any suitable shape in cross section, such for example as T-shape.

The actuating mechanism for windows arranged in gangs may be such as is illustrated in Fig. 10, where actuating rods or bearings li corresponding in function to the rod ll of Fig. 1, are disposed upon the opposite sides of the web 39 of the central T-frame member, these rods being connected to the ears 9 of the window sections 1''.

In this case, the pivots for connecting the rods ll to the ears 9" and indicated at 40, are extended through arcuate slots ll of the web or rib 39 in such manner that the actuation of one rod ii will serve. to actuate the other rod ll and thus both banks of windows may be actuated from. a common actuating member such as segmental worm gear l3, worm l5 and pulley I6, in the matter described with respect to Fig. 1. The upper and lower arcuate slots ll permit the passage of the pivots H and 20, which connect the upper and lower ends of the bars respectively.

Referring now to Fig. 9, 42 indicates resilient metallic weather strlpssecured at 43 to the angle iron frame 39 and bearing yieldingly upon the ends of the window sections to aid in preventing the entry of wind or rain at that point. I may further employ resilient metallic weather strips 45 which overlap the adjacent ends of the window sections I and are fixed to one of said sections as indicated at, it being understood that there will be one of these weather strips for each horizontally aligned pair of window. frame sections.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction shown and described, but that it is intended to cover the principles involved within the scope of the appended claims.

ing a plurality of horizontally pivoted window sections, consisting of a common actuating bar pivotally connected to said sections, and means for actuating said bar comprising a worm gear to which the bar is pivoted, a worm engaging 1. n actuating means for a window compris I passing over said pulley and extending downwardly to a point within reach of the person operating the window.

3. A structure as recited in claim 1, in combination with a spring acting upon said bar in .a manner to counterbalance the weight of the window sections.

4. A structure as recited in claim 1 in combination with a substantially triangular plate, pivoted at one. of its apices in line with the pivotal mountings of the window sections, pivoted at another of its apices to said common actuating rod, and being connected at its third apex to one end of a spring, the other end of the spring being fixed to a portion of the window frame.

5. In combination with a group of window sections comprising frames and transparent panes, means for pivotally mounting said sections adjacent their upper ends and at points substantially equidistantly spaced from each other, ears extending inwardly beyond the said pivot points of each of said sections, and a rod to which said ears are pivotally connected, means for imparting vertical movement to said rod comprising a segmental worm gear with which the said rod has pivotal engagement, a worm en-. gaging the worm gear, a pulley upon the shaft of the worm gear, a strand passing over said pulley, and handles carried by said strand.

6.' A structure as recited in claim 5 in combination with a member to which the lower end of said rod is pivotally connected, means for pivotally mounting said member, and atension spring engaged with said member at such point that in the opening movement of the window sections, the point of engagement of said spring with said member moves further out of vertical alignment and more into horizontal alignment with the pivot point of said member.

7. A structure of the character described comprising a -plurality.of banks of horizontally pivoted window sections, a central mullion by which .said sections aresupported, bars pivotally connected to the window sections of the respective banks, and means for imparting endwise movement to the bars of both banks of windows in unison.

8. A window of the character described comprising a pair of vertical banks of horizontally pivoted window sections and a mullion by which said banks of windows are separated, an ear car ried by each of the window sections, a vertically movable rod for each of the banks of windows, there being one of said rods upon each side of theseparating mullion, said mullion being provided with a plurality of arcuate slots, pivots connecting said bars and said ears and movable in said slots, and means for imparting endwise movement to one of said bars.

9. A structure as recited in claim 8 wherein the said bar actuating means comprises a segment-a1 worm gear to which said bars are pivoted, a worm'engaged with said worm gear, and

' means located exteriorly of the mullion for imthe combination of'a plurality of horizontally I parting turning movement to the worm.

10. In a window of the character described,

of the top frame members, with which the pane of the next higher window section engages when the windows are closed.

11. A structure as recited in claim 10, wherein the top frame members are provided with overhanging, inclined front face portions, said resilient weather strips extending along and being backed up by, said overhanging portions of the top frame members.

12. A structure of the character described comprising a plurality of horizontally pivoted win- I dow sections, a spring actuated shade roller carried by each of said sections and located upon the inner side thereof, shades upon said rollers, cords at the opposite ends of the window sections, an elongated roller upon which all of the cords of all of the shades are wound, and means for imparting turning movement to said roller.

.13. A structure as recited in claim 12 wherein the means for imparting turning movement to the roller comprises a strand wound thereon and a handle for drawing upon the strand, turning movement of the shade roller, under the pull of said strand, drawing upon the shades to withdraw them from the shade rollers, said shade rollers being spring wound in a direction to resist the withdrawal of the shades therefrom.

14, A window unit comprising a head frame member and a pair of side frame members, ears carried by the head frame member extending rearwardly therefrom at the upper portion thereof, said head frame member being shaped to form a housing, a spring actuated shade roller in said housing, a glass pane seated in channels formed in the head and side frame members, packing in the channels of the side frame members which only partially fillssaid channels, to leave passages within the side frame members upon the opposite sides of the glass pane, a shade upon said shade roller, cords attached to said shade and passing downwardly upon the inner side of the pane within the channel of the side frame members, thence over anti-friction devices at the bottom of the side frame members, thence upwardly through the channels of the side frame members outside of the glass, and thence through the head frame member, and resilient weather strips upon the head frame members outwardly of the point at which said cords pass through the head frame member.

15. In a window construction of the character described, the combination with a plurality of horizontally pivoted window sections and a supporting frame by which they are carried, of resilient weather strips secured to the frame and having free portions which bear resiliently against the ends of the said pivoted window sections.

16. A window of the character described comprising a plurality of pairs of horizontally pivoted window sections, the sections of each pair being horizontally aligned with each other, and a resilient weather strip secured to one of said window sections of the pair and overlapping and bearing upon the edge of the companion window section of the pair.

17. In a window construction, a pair of banks of windows, each comprising a plurality of horizontally pivoted window sections, a separating mullion between the sections of the two banks, ears carried by the said window sections, bars to which said ears are pivoted, there being one of said bars upon each side of the separating mullion, the pivots between the said bars and ears passing through the said mullion and being common to the bars and ears upon both sides of said mullion, so that all of the windows 01' both banks may be adjusted simultaneously and in unison.

18. A structure as recited in claim 17 in canbination with resilient weather strips, one imeach of the horizontally alignedwindow sections of the respective pairs oi banh of windows, said weather strips being carried by one of the window sections oi a horizontally aligned pair and bearing yieldinsly upon the .ede of the coinpanion window section oi said pair.

19. A structure oi the character described oomin: movement to one of said members, pivotal connections between the bars and said members i and between the bars and the window sections;

at least one of "881d pivotal connections beingl common to both of saidbars} so that said bars are caused to move in iunison.

20. A window or thethara'ctex described com-j prlsinga, pair oi'*vertic1 "b6nis'of horizontalljr' pivotedwindow sections ai-mullion by which said'bnnks of windows .-are"sepurated, a vertically movable bar. for each oil-the "banks of windows, there-being one of said bars upon each side of the separating mullion, pivots connecting said bars '-and -..-passing through said? mullion, and

means for imparting endwise movement'to one of said the window sections of each bank being pivotally connected'to their corresponding bar. j

' AHDREWT-C. THOMPSON;- 

